Vent: Why does nobody burn rods in right before welding anymore?

Was on a job last week with a new guy, a kid fresh out of a 6-month program. He grabs a fresh rod out of the oven, sticks it in the stinger, and hits the arc. The first weld was a wet mess of porosity and slag inclusions. I called him out on it and he had no idea what I meant about burning the rod end to cook off moisture. Took me 15 minutes to explain that low-hydrogen rods need that 30-second pre-bake at the arc before you start your bead. Has anyone else seen young fellas skip this and then wonder why their X-rays look like Swiss cheese?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_viola6d ago

Actually, I've got to push back a little here. I've been around long enough to see guys who overdo the pre-bake and end up burning off the flux coating in spots, which causes its own problems. The 30-second rule is a guideline, not gospel, and I've passed plenty of X-rays with rods that barely got a 10-second warm-up depending on the shop conditions. Your mileage may vary, but I think we gotta be careful about blaming the new guys for something that's not always the magic fix it's made out to be.

charlies376d ago

30 seconds is plenty for most rods, just don't overthink it.

eva_moore6d ago

Used to be one of those guys who swore by the full 30 second rule no matter what. But watching the flux burn off on a humid day changed my mind pretty quick. It's like the_viola said, shop conditions really matter more than a hard number. Now I just watch for that little crackle and pop to stop, which is usually way less than 30 seconds. Makes sense if you think about it, the rods are just trying to tell you when theyre ready. Id say the old timers know a thing or two about listening to the metal instead of the clock.